January 31, 2013, 4:20PM

The Madisonville-area fire department is seeking approval to place a 10-year, 20.62-mill tax renewal on the May 4 ballot -- six years ahead of its expiration -- to make it easier for the agency to finance construction of a new firehouse. The 2nd Fire District has asked the St. Tammany Parish Council to put the measure on the May... Full story »

January 31, 2013, 4:09PM

When he was only 12 years old, Freddy Drennan lay in a hospital bed in Picayune, Miss., close to death from rheumatic fever. "I heard the doctor tell my mother and daddy standing outside the door that I probably was not going to live," Drennan, 63, told a crowd of about 300 people gathered at Slidlell Municipal Auditorium on... Full story »

January 31, 2013, 2:32PM

Management at the River Garden housing complex is under fire for employing a New Orleans Police officer with 37 complaints lodged against him in the past three years, raising questions about their hiring practices. Public housing residents complain that NOPD Officer Jayson Germann, who works a private security detail in the mixed-income community, terrorizes them through abuse and intimidation.... Full story »

January 31, 2013, 1:25PM

WASHINGTON - Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., will file a new financial report Thursday that says she has accumulated $2.53 million for her re-election race next year, the Landrieu campaign said. That's 2 ½ times as much as she reported for the start of her previous re-election campaign in 2008. Some political analysts said that Landrieu, facing an increasingly conservative... Full story »

January 31, 2013, 10:39AM

Super Bowl 2013 isn't a hurricane, but it's a big enough event that Mayor Mitch Landrieu's administration has opened a joint information center in City Hall's Office of Homeland Security to provide a central hub for information to the hoards of press in town covering the big game. The center, which was most recently activated during Hurricane Isaac, will... Full story »

January 31, 2013, 10:14AM

WASHINGTON - Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is getting a high-profile speaking gig -- delivering the Republican speech at the annual Gridiron Club and Foundation dinner on March 9. The dinner features a satirical show put on by members of the Gridiron, which includes many of Washington's top reporters. The dinner often includes a speech by the president. In addition... Full story »

January 30, 2013, 8:06PM

Jefferson Parish's choice for inspector general, David McClintock, said Wednesday night he anticipates no significant obstacles to negotiating an employment agreement and moving his family down from Baltimore to take the job. "It's a good opportunity for us," McClintock said. "I look forward to working to help Jefferson Parish." His comments came about an hour after the Ethics and... Full story »

January 30, 2013, 8:05PM

Louisianans can begin filing their state income tax returns Thursday but will see a delay in receiving their returns due to new fraud prevention software being used by the state, according to the state's Department of Revenue. Both the federal and state governments had pushed back the first date for filing returns to Jan. 30 as part of the... Full story »

January 30, 2013, 7:54PM

Jefferson Parish Council members received more than $356,000 in campaign contributions since 2009 from contractors that sought work at Wednesday's council meeting, a civic watchdog group said Full story »

January 30, 2013, 7:00PM

Jefferson Parish selected its first inspector general Wednesday: David McClintock, who holds the same job in Baltimore. The decision was made by the Ethics and Compliance Commission, a five-member panel appointed by Parish President John Young with consent of the Parish Council. (See update.) The commission's vote capped a process that began more than three years... Full story »